Articles Population Characteristics of Yellow Perch in a Central Appalachia Hydropower Reservoir Corbin D. Hilling,* Nate D. Taylor, Stuart A. Welsh, Dustin M. Smith C.D. Hilling Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 310 West Campus Drive, Cheatham Hall, Room 106 (MC 0321), Blacksburg, Virginia 24061 N.D. Taylor West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, 2311 Ohio Avenue, Parkersburg, West Virginia 26101 S.A. Welsh U.S. Geological Survey, West Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, West Virginia University, 313 Percival Hall, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506 D.M. Smith West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, 1110 Railroad Street, P.O. Box 99, Farmington, West Virginia 26571 Abstract Estimates of population characteristics of sport fishes inform fisheries management decisions and provide feedback on management strategies. Cheat Lake provides an unusual fishery in West Virginia because the hydropower reservoir supports a Yellow Perch Perca flavescens population. We estimated age structure, size structure, condition, total instantaneous mortality, growth, and summer diet for Cheat Lake Yellow Perch based on electrofishing collections in 2012. From 302 individuals, we observed a maximum age of 9 y. Maximum age, average size, and growth of females in the sample exceeded those of males. Cheat Lake Yellow Perch scored low on the relative weight index, but generally exhibited faster growth than other populations, even when compared by sex. Estimated annual survival was 0.63 (95% CI ¼ 0.51–0.78), which is comparable to other exploited populations. These data support the presence of an ontogenetic diet shift from consumption of zooplankton to macroinvertebrates and fishes as Yellow Perch age. This study is the first evaluation we are aware of on Yellow Perch population characteristics in West Virginia, providing baseline data to enhance management decisions and direct future studies. Keywords: condition; diet; growth; mortality; Perca flavescens; sex Received: March 12, 2018; Accepted: August 7, 2018; Published Online Early: August 2018; Published: December 2018 Citation: Hilling CD, Taylor ND, Welsh SA, Smith DM. 2018. Population characteristics of Yellow Perch in a central Appalachia hydropower reservoir. Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management 9(2):486–495; e1944-687X. doi:10.3996/ 012018-JFWM-007 Copyright: All material appearing in the Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission unless specifically noted with the copyright symbol &. Citation of the source, as given above, is requested. The findings and conclusions in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. * Corresponding Author: hillingc5@gmail.com Introduction Population characteristics, such as individual growth, survival, and longevity, are important to understanding the status of fisheries (Babcock et al. 2013). These life- history traits can provide useful inputs in population dynamic models and inform management plans for exploited populations (Cort ´ es 1998). In addition, inte- Journal of Fish and Wildlife Management | www.fwspubs.org December 2018 | Volume 9 | Issue 2 | 486 Downloaded from http://meridian.allenpress.com/jfwm/article-pdf/9/2/486/2338575/012018-jfwm-007.pdf by guest on 29 June 2022